FILMING
Production crews film scenes in Covington for season three of popular Netflix series “Sweet Magnolias.” Special to The News
130-plus films, TV shows produced in Newton County since 1953 By TOM SPIGOLON
tspigolon@covnews.com
COVINGTON, Ga. — Newton County has become both a mecca for the TV and film industry and for tourists attracted to the locations for the productions filmed here. Covington and Newton County are known as the “Hollywood of the South” — a nickname the Covington-Newton County Chamber of Commerce trademarked in 2012. Currently, parts of Covington serve as the location for the fictional Serenity, South Carolina, on Netflix’s “Sweet Magnolias.” Covington served as a stand-in for Mystic Falls, Virginia, where the TV show “The Vampire Diaries” was set. It ran from 2009-2017 on The CW network and spawned spin-offs for the popular show, including “The Originals” and “Legacies.” “Diaries” also continues to have a cult following and fans from throughout the country flock to the Covington Square for walking tours of show locations. The show’s popularity reportedly led to Newton County becoming one of the leaders in film tourism in Georgia following a 300% increase in visitor numbers since 2009, according to Covington tourism coordinator DJ Waller.
“Any given day, you will see fans of the show meandering around the Square, walking up and down Floyd and Conyers Streets, shopping in our stores and eating in our restaurants,” Waller said in 2020. Waller said “Sweet Magnolias” also had the potential for drawing a similar influx of fans to see its filming locations. TOURISM A BENEFIT Among the more popular stops for film tourists is Twelve Oaks Bed and Breakfast, a mansion built in 1836. It has served as the location for almost 100 TV shows and films, including “Vampire Diaries.” The Mystic Grill restaurant on the Covington Square also is a popular stop for tourists as is Vampire Stalkers, which offers a guided tour of filming locations and a gift shop for “Diaries” fans. Covington’s Welcome Center includes a Film and History museum, which was made possible through collaboration with the Newton County Historical Society. The museum includes memorabilia from the popular TV shows and movies filmed in the Covington area, such as “The Vampire Diaries” and its spin-off, “The Originals.” It also includes items from such classic, Covington-filmed shows as “The Dukes of Hazzard” and
“In the Heat of the Night.” Welcome Center Coordinator Ron Carter told The Covington News in April the addition of the museum was needed because of the amount of tourists drawn to the area because of its film history. “We have people coming in on a weekly basis for ‘Dukes of Hazzard’ and ‘In the Heat of the Night,’ but most definitely the biggest influx of people is going to be your ‘Vampire Diaries’ and ‘The Originals,’” Carter said. “We say that film tourism is kind of the highlight of what we can do here. We also offer recreational tourism, cultural tourism and historical tourism, but film is our kind of bread and butter, so to speak.” Carter said the city generally averaged about 40,000 to 45,000 visitors a year before the pandemic. He estimated 75% are film tourists and, of those, 80% are specifically visiting for “Vampire Diaries.” STUDIOS OPEN, OPERATING Cinelease Studios-Three Ring began operating in late 2020 on 160 acres on Georgia Hwy. 142 two miles north of I-20 in Covington. It has more than 110,000 square feet of sound stage space, 60,000 square feet of stage support space, 30,000 square feet of office space, and an additional 110 Newcomer’s Guide | 13
